A method of forming a thinned encapsulated chip structure, wherein the method comprises providing a separation structure arranged within an electronic chip, encapsulating part of the electronic chip by an encapsulating structure, and thinning selectively the electronic chip partially encapsulated by the encapsulating structure so that the encapsulating structure remains with a larger thickness than the thinned electronic chip, wherein the separation structure functions as a thinning stop.
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1. A method of forming a thinned encapsulated chip structure, the method comprising: forming a separation master structure arranged within a wafer; and singularising the wafer with its separation master structure into an electronic chip with its separation structure being formed by a portion of the separation master structure, and into at least one further electronic chip each having a further separation structure being formed by another portion of the separation master structure; encapsulating part of the electronic chip by an encapsulating structure; thinning selectively the electronic chip partially encapsulated by the encapsulating structure so that the encapsulating structure remains with a larger thickness than the thinned electronic chip, wherein the separation structure functions as a thinning stop.
A method for creating a thinned chip structure involves these steps: First, create a separation structure within a semiconductor wafer. Then, dice the wafer into individual chips, each with a portion of the original separation structure. Next, encapsulate part of the chip with a protective material. Finally, selectively thin the chip, leaving the encapsulation thicker than the thinned chip. The key is that the separation structure acts as a "stop," preventing the thinning process from going too far and potentially damaging integrated circuits on the chip.
2. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising, before the singularising, forming integrated circuit elements in a portion of the wafer being separated by the separation master structure from another portion of the wafer so that, after the singularising, each of the electronic chip and the at least one further electronic chip comprises at least one of the integrated circuit elements.
Building upon the method for creating a thinned chip structure (creating a separation structure within a semiconductor wafer; dicing the wafer into individual chips, each with a portion of the original separation structure; encapsulating part of the chip with a protective material; selectively thinning the chip, leaving the encapsulation thicker than the thinned chip, where the separation structure acts as a thinning stop), this improvement adds the step of creating integrated circuit elements on the wafer *before* dicing. These circuits are made in areas of the wafer that will become individual chips after dicing, ensuring each resulting chip contains at least one integrated circuit.
3. The method according to claim 2 , further comprising, before the forming of the integrated circuit elements, epitaxially growing an additional body to form part of the portion of the wafer being separated by the separation master structure from the other portion of the wafer, wherein the integrated circuit elements are formed at least partially in the additional body.
Further building on the method of creating a thinned chip structure with integrated circuits (creating a separation structure within a semiconductor wafer; before dicing, creating integrated circuit elements on the wafer in areas that will become individual chips after dicing; dicing the wafer into individual chips, each with a portion of the original separation structure and at least one integrated circuit; encapsulating part of the chip with a protective material; selectively thinning the chip, leaving the encapsulation thicker than the thinned chip, where the separation structure acts as a thinning stop), an additional epitaxial layer is grown on the wafer *before* forming the integrated circuits. The integrated circuits are then created, at least partially, within this epitaxial layer.
4. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the electronic chip is laterally surrounded by the encapsulating structure and one of two opposing main surfaces of the electronic chip is covered at least partially by the encapsulating structure, whereas the other one of the two opposing main surfaces remains exposed to an environment.
In the method for creating a thinned chip structure (creating a separation structure within a semiconductor wafer; dicing the wafer into individual chips, each with a portion of the original separation structure; encapsulating part of the chip with a protective material; selectively thinning the chip, leaving the encapsulation thicker than the thinned chip, where the separation structure acts as a thinning stop), the chip is encapsulated in a way that the encapsulating material surrounds the sides of the chip and covers at least part of one of its main surfaces. The opposite main surface remains exposed.
5. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the method comprises selectively removing the separation structure after the thinning.
In the method for creating a thinned chip structure (creating a separation structure within a semiconductor wafer; dicing the wafer into individual chips, each with a portion of the original separation structure; encapsulating part of the chip with a protective material; selectively thinning the chip, leaving the encapsulation thicker than the thinned chip, where the separation structure acts as a thinning stop), the separation structure itself is removed after the thinning process is complete.
6. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the method comprises providing the electronic chip with at least one integrated circuit element in a portion of the electronic chip being separated by the separation structure from another portion of the electronic chip being removed by the thinning.
In the method for creating a thinned chip structure (creating a separation structure within a semiconductor wafer; dicing the wafer into individual chips, each with a portion of the original separation structure; encapsulating part of the chip with a protective material; selectively thinning the chip, leaving the encapsulation thicker than the thinned chip, where the separation structure acts as a thinning stop), the chip has at least one integrated circuit. The separation structure divides the chip, separating the portion containing the integrated circuit(s) from the portion that will be removed during the thinning process.
7. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the thinning is performed by back etching material of the electronic chip while using the encapsulating structure as an etch mask.
In the method for creating a thinned chip structure (creating a separation structure within a semiconductor wafer; dicing the wafer into individual chips, each with a portion of the original separation structure; encapsulating part of the chip with a protective material; selectively thinning the chip, leaving the encapsulation thicker than the thinned chip, where the separation structure acts as a thinning stop), the thinning is achieved by etching away material from the back side of the chip. The encapsulating material acts as a mask, protecting the encapsulated areas from the etching process.
8. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the method further comprises: providing a further separation structure arranged within a further electronic chip; encapsulating part of the further electronic chip by the encapsulating structure together with the electronic chip; and thinning selectively the further electronic chip partially encapsulated by the encapsulating structure together with the electronic chip so that the encapsulating structure remains with a larger thickness than the thinned further electronic chip, wherein the further separation structure functions as a thinning stop.
An enhancement to the thinned chip structure method (creating a separation structure within a semiconductor wafer; dicing the wafer into individual chips, each with a portion of the original separation structure; encapsulating part of the chip with a protective material; selectively thinning the chip, leaving the encapsulation thicker than the thinned chip, where the separation structure acts as a thinning stop) involves processing multiple chips simultaneously. A further separation structure is arranged within a *second* chip. Both chips are encapsulated together and then thinned together. The separation structure in *each* chip acts as a thinning stop for that chip.
9. The method according to claim 8 , wherein the separation structure and the further separation structure are formed at the same height level.
In the method of thinning multiple encapsulated chips simultaneously (providing a further separation structure arranged within a further electronic chip; encapsulating part of the further electronic chip by the encapsulating structure together with the electronic chip; and thinning selectively the further electronic chip partially encapsulated by the encapsulating structure together with the electronic chip so that the encapsulating structure remains with a larger thickness than the thinned further electronic chip, wherein the further separation structure functions as a thinning stop), the separation structures in both chips are located at the same vertical level within the chips.
10. The method according to claim 8 , comprising singularising sections each comprising a respective one of the thinned electronic chips encapsulated by a respective portion of the encapsulating structure.
Expanding on the method of thinning multiple encapsulated chips simultaneously (providing a further separation structure arranged within a further electronic chip; encapsulating part of the further electronic chip by the encapsulating structure together with the electronic chip; and thinning selectively the further electronic chip partially encapsulated by the encapsulating structure together with the electronic chip so that the encapsulating structure remains with a larger thickness than the thinned further electronic chip, wherein the further separation structure functions as a thinning stop), after the thinning and encapsulation, the combined structure is diced again to separate the individual thinned chips, each with its own portion of the encapsulating material.
11. A method of forming a thinned encapsulated semiconductor device, the method comprising: forming, on a wafer level, a separation layer being formed by a portion of a separation master structure within a semiconductor chip forming part of the wafer so that the separation layer separates a first chip body of the semiconductor chip on one side of the separation layer with regard to a second chip body of the semiconductor chip on the other side of the separation layer; forming, on the wafer level, at least one integrated circuit element in and/or on the first chip body; singularising the wafer with its separation master structure into the electronic chip with its separation structure being formed by a portion of the separation master structure, and into at least one further electronic chip each having a further separation structure being formed by another portion of the separation master structure; encapsulating part of the singularised chip by an encapsulating structure; removing selectively the second chip body up to the separation layer so that the encapsulating structure remains with a larger thickness than the first chip body.
A method for creating a thinned semiconductor device involves forming a separation layer within a semiconductor wafer. This separation layer divides the wafer into a first chip body and a second chip body. At least one integrated circuit element is created in/on the first chip body on the wafer level. The wafer is then diced into individual chips, each with a portion of the separation master structure. Part of the chip is encapsulated. Finally, the second chip body is selectively removed down to the separation layer, leaving the encapsulated portion thicker than the remaining first chip body.
12. The method according to claim 11 , wherein the first chip body is formed with a thickness of less than 10 μm.
In the method of forming a thinned semiconductor device by separating a chip into two bodies (forming a separation layer; creating integrated circuit elements in/on the first chip body; dicing the wafer; encapsulating part of the chip; removing the second chip body up to the separation layer, leaving the encapsulated portion thicker than the remaining first chip body), the remaining first chip body is made very thin, specifically less than 10 micrometers thick.
13. The method according to claim 11 , wherein the method comprises, on the wafer level, forming an additional body on the first chip body.
In the method of forming a thinned semiconductor device by separating a chip into two bodies (forming a separation layer; creating integrated circuit elements in/on the first chip body; dicing the wafer; encapsulating part of the chip; removing the second chip body up to the separation layer, leaving the encapsulated portion thicker than the remaining first chip body), an additional layer is grown on top of the first chip body *before* any other processing steps on the wafer level.
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October 18, 2013
April 18, 2017
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